This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-29253075

The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Health services finances 'worsening' NHS finances 'worsening' as deficit nears £500m
(about 11 hours later)
Supposedly-elite NHS foundation trusts in England are running up an overall deficit for the first time, the regulator is expected to say later. The NHS in England has run up a deficit of nearly £500m in the first few months of the financial year, official figures show.
Monitor will release details on the performance of 147 trusts covering hospitals, mental health and ambulances in the first quarter of 2014-15. Regulators said the sums were greater than had been expected - and warned hospitals in particular they must "get a grip" on the situation.
The mounting pressures will be discussed at a board meeting next week. It comes as the NHS is struggling to hit key waiting time targets for cancer, A&E units and routine operations.
It comes after it has been confirmed 33 of the 65 non-foundation trusts have gone into the red. Increasing demand for services was highlighted as one of the key causes.
In the first four months, they have racked up £300m of deficit, but by the end of the year that is expected to rise to £409m, according to data published by the Trust Development Authority which oversees the parts of the NHS that have not been given foundation trust status. The figures covered all types of trusts, including hospitals, mental health and ambulance services.
The deficit run up so far is more than the entire one for the whole of last year. They have been published in board papers released by Monitor and the Trust Development Agency, which oversee foundation trusts and non-foundation trusts respectively.
Both sectors posted deficits - the first time foundation trusts have done so.
The figures from Monitor showed a deficit of £167m had been run up in the first quarter of 2014-15 - above the £80m forecast. A total of 86 out of 147 trusts were in the red.
'Tight financial grip''Tight financial grip'
But it is the performance of foundation trusts that looks likely to raise the most questions. The data for the non-foundation trusts, which covers the first four months, showed there had been a £300m deficit, compared with a £224m forecast. Thirty-three out of 65 were in deficit.
They are meant to be the high-performing trusts - and as such they are given extra freedoms and do not have to balance their books each year. The biggest problems were seen in hospital trusts - and this was also illustrated by the difficulties they were experiencing in meeting their waiting time targets.
However, this time last year they were £27m in surplus overall and Monitor is expected to warn the NHS - and hospitals in particular - are facing rising demand for services. The two-month target for cancer patients to get their first treatment after an urgent referral was missed in the first quarter - the second time in a row that this has happened. Although other cancer targets, including the two-week wait to see a specialist after an urgent referral, have been met.
The four-hour A&E waiting time target was met in the first quarter, but performance did deteriorate in several weeks despite the period covering spring and summer which are traditionally easier times for hospitals.
But the 18-week target for routine surgery was missed in June and July - although ministers have signalled to the NHS that standards can slip until the end of the year while they deal with the backlog of long waits.
Monitor chief executive Dr David Bennett said: "Trusts are striving to overcome the challenges they face while still meeting patients' expectations for quality care."
But he said more progress could be made, particularly by "getting a grip" on staffing costs - the use of agency staff is high in many places - as well as identifying other savings.
A Department of Health spokesman pointed out the NHS budget, which stands at over £100bn for the year, had been protected this Parliament.A Department of Health spokesman pointed out the NHS budget, which stands at over £100bn for the year, had been protected this Parliament.
He added: "We understand some trusts are facing challenges because of increasing demand but they must have a tight financial grip and ensure they live within their means.He added: "We understand some trusts are facing challenges because of increasing demand but they must have a tight financial grip and ensure they live within their means.
"Delivering high quality services and balancing the books must go hand in hand and we expect trusts to deliver this during the course of the financial year." "Delivering high-quality services and balancing the books must go hand in hand and we expect trusts to deliver this during the course of the financial year."
Rob Webster, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents trusts, said: "We have been warning for some time that NHS trusts will fall further into deficit as they try to balance rising demand for care against flat funding."
He added trusts were "working tirelessly" to keep standards up.